I am 26, employed in the media industry and my monthly income is Rs 45,000. Post my monthly expenses and the above contributions, I am left with Rs 8,000 per month, which I plan to invest.
My goals are :The medical cover is for a sum assured of Rs 1 lakh. I plan to invest in a pension plan to meet my retirement need, in 2040. I hold Franklin India Prima, HDFC Equity,ICICI Pru Dynamic and Eq & Der Wealth Optimiser, Magnum COMMA, Contra, Global and Midcap, SBI Infrastructure Fund Series 1. I plan to invest Rs 60,000 this year for tax-savings.
Please advise on realigning my portfolio in line with my goals.
Tax savings goal
Your total investment for Section 80C accounts for Rs 55,000 for this year. To exhaust the limit of Rs 1 lakh, you are required to invest another Rs 45,000. Due to time restrictions, you may either invest as lumpsum or in two instalments.
Investing for goals
House: According to the website of a public sector bank, you can get a loan of Rs 30 lakh at 8.50 per cent. For 20 years, you will have to pay an installment of Rs 23,000 per month. Once you pay back your educational loan, you may redirect Rs 12,500 towards home loan. You will have to increase your savings to meet the rest, or postpone the goals temporarily.
Retirement: Investment in pension plans offered by insurance companies are costly products. Investing in mutual funds can help you fulfil your needs in a better way.
How much to invest?
Assuming a return of 10 per cent on Rs 8,000 for 31 years, increasing by 5 per cent yearly will help accumulate the retirement corpus. You may withdraw Rs 10 lakh after five years for your house.
Portfolio
Nine funds are way too many, you can get the same diversification with fewer funds. A majority of these are not consistent performers. Drop funds which have been a laggard for long or are unrated.
Asset allocation
With your goals far off, you can invest in equities. Your core holdings should preferably comprise large-cap diversified funds. Your investment in debt - PPF, savings account and FDs, are close to 48 percent. We have excluded investments in PF and value of life insurance policy, which also adds to debt exposure.
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Debt allocation is too high. Target 80 per cent allocation in equities. Once the FD matures, you may transfer the amount to equities. Rebalance your portfolio regularly to maintain the allocation, depending on your risk appetite.
As you approach the goals, sell off equity holdings gradually and direct money to debt, as save the capital.
PPF investment provides tax benefit, the lock-in period makes it highly illiquid. A debt fund may help in rebalancing.
38 per cent of your portfolio is invested in aggressive and sectoral/thematic funds. 20-30 percent in such funds is enough.
Out of your nine schemes, five belong to one fund house, SBI MF. Many funds from one fund house are influenced by similar thinking. Any unfavourable decision may adversely affect a large part of your portfolio. Therefore, diversify across different fund houses. Look for five to six funds that will give you all the necessary diversification.
Investments in tax-saving funds can also form the core of the portfolio.
To meet future contingencies, you can bank upon the savings account. You may even invest in liquid funds for better returns.
Medical Insurance
The health cover you have is from your employer. Any transition period will leave you uninsured. You should get additional medical insurance on your own that will adequately cover some basic risks.